Sisters in Bloom (Love in Bloom: Snow Sisters #2), Contemporary Romance (16 page)

She kissed his neck. “Okay, okay, shut up.” Her kiss turned to a hard, tongue-pressing suck. How could he have kept anything from this sweet, delicious woman? He brought her lips to his and she arched in to him as he kissed her deeper, relishing the taste of her. He’d never let her go, and he’d be damned if he’d let someone like Lea come between them. His hand slid down her neck to the crest of her breast and she moaned, a hungry, desperate moan.

“Bedroom,” she whispered as she came to her feet. She took his hand and led him down the hall and into their bedroom, closing the door behind them. “I missed you,” she said as she unbuttoned his shirt, running her hands down his chest and sending a shiver up his spine.

 “It’s been too long,” he whispered, guiding her to the bed. Chaz lifted her sundress from her body. Her heavy, full breasts were still confined within the black lace bra she wore. Even pregnant, Kaylie was the sexiest woman Chaz had ever known, and now, as he unhooked her bra and her breasts sprang free, he knew there would never be anyone else he’d rather be with. As she pressed into him, he said, “I’m so sorry.”

“Shh. No more talking about that,” she whispered as she dropped her hand and stroked him through is pants.

“I love these pregnancy urges.” He took her breast in his mouth and she gasped and then lowered herself onto the bed, stroking the back of his head, pulling him closer, forcing his mouth harder around her nipple. 

He drew down her lacy thong with one finger and gripped the supple skin of her hip. She shuddered beneath his touch, reaching for the button on his pants. He gently grabbed her wrist, stopping her from going any further.

“Kaylie,” he said as he looked into her lustful eyes, “there is no one else on this earth for me. I don’t care if you work, don’t work, or what you do, as long as you’re happy. I just need you to know that.” He lowered his forehead to rest against hers. Her breath filled the space between them. “I don’t want you ever worrying again. If you think something is going on, ask me. I’ll always be honest.”

“I think something is going on,” she said.

He drew back.

She pulled him back to her and kissed him, exploring his mouth with her tongue as if it were the first time. “Something between us,” she whispered, and teased him with a flick of her tongue along his lips. “I trust you, and I’m working on the rest.” She kissed him again. “But I’ll never...” Kaylie rolled him onto his back and unbuttoned his pants. “Ever...” She tried awkwardly to tug his pants off, and he took over, tossing them and his skivvies aside.

Kaylie watched his desire, growing stronger by the second. “Jump to conclusions again,” she whispered as she licked her lips.

Just the sight of her sweet tongue on her lips made his adrenaline soar. He reached for her, just as she began to straddle him.

She slid down upon him and the shock of her warmth and the cool of her wetness stole his breath away. She drew his hands to her waist, letting him guide her slow, sensual movements, and in that moment, the worry of the past few days fell away.

Danica watched the sun ease into the bedroom, illuminating a path across Blake’s legs. She’d been up for hours, thinking about her conversation with her mother, worried about Kaylie, and rubbing a knot of stress that had developed at the base of her skull.

She curled onto her side, watching Blake sleep. He wasn’t a guy who carried his worries tucked away, and that was one of the many things she loved about him. She’d thought she was the same way, wearing her emotions on her sleeve; but lately, as she faced the biggest decisions of her life, she realized that she was the one who had been hiding her true concerns. In the predawn hours—as she lay next to Blake, listening to the rhythm of his contented breaths and the stillness of the condo—she tried to work through her emotions as she might have done with a client so many months ago, but she kept coming full circle. Her fears all started, and ended, with Kaylie. She’d always worried about Kaylie; that wasn’t new. But had she always deferred her own happiness due to what was going on in Kaylie’s life?

Blake stirred beside her. His eyes opened, then closed, as he reached his arm around her.

“You okay?” he asked sleepily.

“Yeah,” she whispered.
No
. She felt the lie nipping at her nerves. It was unfair to Blake to let Kaylie’s life have such a big impact on the life they were building together. She played a scene in her mind, telling Kaylie that she was getting married. She imagined Kaylie bursting into tears, too upset over her own broken relationship to be happy for Danica and then blaming Danica, somehow, for her and Chaz’s issues.

No matter what Kaylie might or might not do, Danica realized, she wasn’t willing to put her happiness on hold any longer. She cupped Blake’s cheek and moved in closer, their knees touching, head to head, eye to eye. “I’m moving in,” she whispered.

Blake’s eyes sprang open. “I think I heard you wrong.”

She kissed his lips. “I’m moving in. Here. With you. I’m doing it.”

He pulled her body against his. “That’s what I thought you said.” He rolled on top of her and held down her hands. “Look me in the eye and say it again.”

Wipe that silly grin off your face!
His smile was infectious and he was so damned cute. Danica tried to keep a straight face, but her lips had other ideas. She felt her cheeks bloom. “I’m moving in.”

“What about Kaylie?”

Danica shook her head. “I don’t think I want her moving in with us,” she teased.

Blake reached down and grabbed her ribs, sending her into a fit of giggles. She swiped at his arms as they rolled around on the bed, laughing. The weight of the world lifted from her shoulders.

He jumped off the bed and did a little dance, swaying his sexy, boxer-briefed hips from side to side, his fingers snapping, shoulders moving up and down.

“You’re a fool.” She laughed.

He sank to one knee.

Danica froze.

Blake took her hand. “And… is there more?”

She knew what he was asking.
Marry me
.
Say yes!
“Baby steps,” she whispered, hoping he would understand.

His head fell into her hands. She ran her fingers through his thick hair. He lifted his eager eyes in her direction, and Danica knew they weren’t eager with lust; they were eager with hope.

She loved him, and as she ran her hands over his muscular shoulders, she wanted nothing more than to be his wife. Kaylie’s unhappiness still hovered like a bad dream, so she said nothing at all.

Blake rose to his feet, and Danica’s heart cracked as the shine of hope left his eyes. She feared the loneliness she felt in that split second. Hers. His. Had she crushed him? Was she crushing herself? Was she running out of chances with the man she loved? She reached for his hand, and he looked at her with a mix of love and hurt.

“I want to marry you more than anything in this world. I want to be Mrs. Blake Carter, but not at the expense of hurting my sister. How can I be elated if she’s so torn?”

Blake withdrew his hand and ran it through his messy bed-head hair. “I get it. I’m gonna shower. Alyssa needs my help with the inventory this morning.”

If he got it, then why did Danica feel like she’d lost a piece of him?

“The chairs will go here, the table of refreshments, there.” Sally pointed to the patio just outside the barn doors. “I still can’t believe we got the barn.”

Danica couldn’t believe it either. The county owned the barn, which sat right at the edge of town. Generations earlier, the more than ten thousand acres of land surrounding the barn had belonged to the Allure family, for whom the town was named. Over the years, they’d divided the property, selling off acreage to developers and families. Finally, they donated the last thirteen acres to the county, along with the barn, placing it into a land trust. The county had restored the barn in recent years, an event that the entire town had celebrated.

As Danica stood in the center of the nearly three-thousand-square-foot structure, she marveled at the high ceiling. The substantial wooden rafters were exposed like bones of a fish, and the smell of cedar was artfully used throughout the building. She imagined her own wedding taking place there one day, and the thought brought sadness back to her heart for not being able to accept his proposal on the spot.

“Are you even listening to me?” Sally asked.

“What? Yeah, of course. Sorry. It’s just so beautiful in here.”
Get your head in the game, Danica.

“You’re like a million miles away. Do you want to do this another time?”

“No, I’m good.” They walked outside, and Sally showed Danica where they would place the tables and string the lights in the surrounding trees and along the rafters of the barn.

“The event is tomorrow. When are the lights going up?” She looked at her watch. “Didn’t we specify this afternoon?”

“It’s only ten, Danica. Wow, you really are stressed.”

Danica sighed. “You’re right. Sorry. Are we missing anything at all?”

“Nope. Gage is taking care of the programs, and Kaylie called and said she and her band will be here two hours early to set up. I still can’t believe her doctor is letting her sing this close to her due date, but she said her doctor gave the okay.” Sally shook her head and her shiny blond hair swung from side to side.

Danica noticed that she was wearing more jewelry than usual. “Necklace, earrings,
and
a bracelet. Mm-hmm.”

Sally touched her necklace. “What?”

“Nothing.” She began walking toward the car.

“It’s just jewelry,” Sally muttered.

“Would this jewelry have anything to do with Gage?”

Sally was silent.

Danica touched her arm and stopped walking. “Dish,” she said with a smile.

“There was a moment.”

“A moment?”

Sally blushed. “It wasn’t really anything, and I probably overdramatized it.”

“Overdramatized
what
?”

Sally looked around, as if someone might hear them among the empty acres of land. “We met for coffee again this morning to make sure we had everything covered.”

Danica interrupted. “Who asked whom?”

“He asked me.”

“Okay, go on.” Danica was already picturing them as a couple.

“I’m such a lummox. I tripped on the way out of the coffee shop and he caught me, like this.” She placed her hand on Danica’s elbow. “And I was here.” She moved in closer to Danica, their chests almost touching. “And our eyes met, and…I don’t know. It sounds so stupid now.” She released Danica’s arm.

“No, it doesn’t. So there wasn’t a kiss?”

Sally shook her head. “But there was something. Our eyes didn’t just meet; they held. You know that thing, that electricity that passes between two people?”

Danica thought of the instant attraction she’d felt with Blake outside of Bar None the night she’d twisted her ankle. The way her body had grown warm in places that had been asleep for too long. “Yeah, I know that feeling. When it’s like the space between you is filled with desire but neither one moves on it? But then I usually feel stupid and
do
something stupid.”

Sally clicked her seat belt as Danica started the engine.

“Oh, I did. I apologized, thanked him for catching me, made a stupid joke, but there was a
look
in his eyes.”

“It’s called lust.”

“No, the more I think about it, the more I think he was petrified of me. Like I’d just made an inappropriate move on him or something. Thank God I didn’t kiss him.”

“You’re being silly. He was probably just uncomfortable for the same reasons you were.” She watched the worry creep across Sally’s forehead. “Sally, you’re beautiful, smart, and kind.”

“A widow. The mom of a testosterone-laden teenager. I come with baggage. Major baggage.”

Don’t we all? Luckily, Blake loves me, baggage and all.

By the time Sally and Danica arrived at the center, Gage had already laid out stacks of information packets, signup sheets, and waivers for the next day’s event. She could hardly believe the dance and gathering was coming together so well. If they pulled this off, and it was a success, Danica envisioned it becoming an annual event that members of the community could look forward to each year.

“Did you see the paper?” Gage stood beside Danica, showing her the announcement in the
Allure Times
.

“Front page! That’s fantastic. We should get a big turnout.” Danica looked at Sally, who was fiddling with her pencil. She stole a glance at Gage, and the way he kept his eyes trained on the newspaper told her that he was purposely not looking at Sally.
Oh, God. Had Sally been right?
Was she facing an employer’s nightmare after all? She rescued Sally. “Why don’t you take these out front and make sure the kids see them and take them home to their parents tonight.”

Relief sent Sally hurrying toward her office with a nod.

“They were mailed to our community list, too, so most parents probably already received them. We’ve received eighty-nine back already,” Gage said.

“Eighty-nine? Wow. I expected, I don’t know, fifty kids. Tops,” Danica said.

 “This is gonna be huge. I can just feel it.” Gage’s smile, and the way he used his hands to demonstrate
huge,
told Danica that he was more relaxed now that Sally had left the room.

“So, you and Sally met this morning?” She didn’t want to pry, but she needed to know if there was an issue between employees. Okay, maybe she did want to pry. Just a little.

Gage’s face grew serious again. “Yeah, just to go over the details. I knew she’d be swamped today, and I have two basketball sessions this morning, so I thought it might save time.”

Poor Sally. She’s reading too much into this
. “Sounds smart. Thanks. So are we missing anything? I feel like we’re missing something.”

Gage was looking out of Danica’s office and into the lobby.

“Gage?”

“Huh? Oh, sorry.”

Danica took a step toward her desk so she could better see the lobby. Sally was hovering over her desk, her backside pointed in their direction. Danica smiled to herself.
Maybe it’s not poor Sally after all
. “I feel like we’re missing something.”

“Nope. We have refreshments covered. Nancy and Michelle are helping there. Sally and I will make sure things go smoothly, and you’ll be there. We have a handful of parent volunteers who are chaperoning, so I think we’re covered. You don’t mind that I’ve been putting in extra hours, do you?”

What would I do without these people?
“The door is open when you’re ready for full-time. First aid? Who’s got that station?”

Gage smiled, nodding and looking over his papers. “Mrs. Peck. She’s one of the school nurses and volunteered.”

“Perfect. Get a waiver.”

“Already taken care of, and, Danica, thank you for the offer.”

Danica leaned against her desk, thinking about what else she might have overlooked. Her cell phone rang.
Blake
.

Gage pointed at the door.

Danica nodded. “I’ll get you if I think of anything else.” She had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Blake hadn’t stayed to talk over coffee, the way they usually did in the mornings, and when he’d kissed her goodbye, he’d brushed her cheek with his lips. He never brushed her cheek. He kissed her lips goodbye. Always. She grabbed her cell and answered. “Hi,” she said in an overly perky voice, hoping it might be contagious and they could pretend she hadn’t just broken his heart—and maybe her own.

“Hey, babe. Wanna meet at the café for lunch?”

Danica stood. “For lunch?” She ran through her phone calls and the last-minute confirmations she wanted to make regarding the lights and parking lot. Damn, she’d forgotten about parking lot attendants.

“Danica? Are you there? If you’re too busy…”

“No, I can. I want to. Noonish?” She scribbled notes to herself so she wouldn’t forget the parking attendants.

“Great. See you then.”

See you then
. Not,
I love you
. Not even,
Love you
. Danica moved around her desk and sank into her cushioned chair. It was ten forty-five. She had another hour and fifteen minutes until her life fell apart.